Pick and roll: How to adapt your supply chain game
The past year has certainly given us a dizzying array of challenges. It’s more important than ever to stay nimble and take your supply chain game to a whole new level.
Brian Gibson is the Wilson Family professor at Auburn University’s Raymond J. Harbert College of Business. He is also executive director of the Center for Supply Chain Innovation.
As I reflect on the last 12 months, one word keeps coming to mind—pivot. While I never mastered the pivot move during my unspectacular high school basketball career, I certainly have learned to pivot quickly in nearly every aspect of life over the last 12 months.
Every supply chain professional, educator, student, and association leader has had a similar experience. Life as we knew it changed dramatically as the first cancellations of NBA games and the NCAA tournament were announced in March 2020.
From an industry standpoint, nearly every supply chain responded with the explosiveness of a Michael Jordan spin move. Companies rapidly established remote work capabilities and modified safety protocols to protect essential workers in distributioncenters and on the roads. Retailers ramped up e-commerce fulfillment to handle the tidal wave of online orders. Manufacturers modified sourcing locations and transportation lanes to keep production lines running. These quick shifts are but a few of the critical moves made by supply chain professionals to sustain their organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the academic world, universities pivoted to online learning, often with less than a week’s notice. Supply chain educators became masters of Zoom and Microsoft Teams, modifying content and working tirelessly to preserve a sense of normalcy for students. Career fairs and interviews transitioned to online platforms, and requirements were adjusted to support remote internships. Supply chain research about pandemic responses has been produced with a great sense of urgency. Collectively, these pivots reveal that the “ivory tower” is more agile and adaptable than anyone thought possible.
The Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) also demonstrated hall-of-fame caliber moves in 2020. As a CSCMP board of directors officer, I had a courtside seat for the amazing pivots made by the organization’s staff, board, volunteer base, and members. The CSCMP leadership team made complex decisions to keep the organization vibrant. Board meetings became two-day online events but suffered no loss of energy or passion. Roundtables creatively shifted online to provide timely webinars, virtual tours, and (much needed) remote happy hours to connect, develop, and educate CSCMP members.
The ultimate CSCMP pivot was moving the EDGE 2020 Conference and the Academic Research Symposium from onsite to virtual delivery. A year’s worth of planning and execution was compressed into just a few months. Hotel contracts were renegotiated, an online meeting platform was chosen, and nearly 300 speakers prerecorded their content in mid-August. The results? A host of sponsors, virtual exhibitors, speakers, and volunteers created the premier supply chain management virtual event for 2020. Timely content was delivered in 120 sessions across four and half days to more than 2,800 EDGE registrants.
If all this pivoting made you dizzy or exhausted, I absolutely get it. However, we must stay nimble in 2021 and develop new moves. Have a succession plan in place to seamlessly transition when key personnel retire or pursue free agency. Modify strategies to make your organization less reliant on supply chain hot spots. Collaborate with your supply chain partners to achieve greater process resilience in preparation for the next big disruption.
Importantly, make time for professional development and networking. Renew your CSCMP membership, participate in roundtable events, read the great content in Supply Chain Quarterly, and mark your calendar for September 19–22, 2021, in Atlanta, Georgia. CSCMP is pivoting toward hybrid delivery for EDGE 2021 to facilitate both in-person and virtual participation. In-person attendees can be fully confident in their well-being, thanks to the safety protocols that CSCMP is enacting for the conference.
So, break away from that home office computer screen for a “road game” at EDGE 2021 in Atlanta. I look forward to seeing you there!
The venture-backed fleet telematics technology provider Platform Science will acquire a suite of “global transportation telematics business units” from supply chain technology provider Trimble Inc., the firms said Sunday.
Trimble's other core transportation business units — Enterprise, Maps, Vusion and Transporeon — are not included in the proposed transaction and will remain part of Trimble's Transportation & Logistics segment, with a continued focus on priority growth areas following completion of the proposed transaction.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed but as part of this agreement, Colorado-based Trimble will become a shareholder in Platform Science's expanded business. Specifically, Trimble will have a 32.5% stake in the newly expanded global Platform Science business and will receive a Platform Science board seat. The company joins C.R. England, Cummins, Daimler Truck, PACCAR, Prologis, RyderVentures, and Schneider as a key strategic investor in Platform Science along with financial investors 8VC, Activant Capital, BDT & MSD Partners, Softbank, and NewRoad Capital Partners.
According to San Diego-based Platform Science, the proposed transaction aims to enhance driver experience, fleet safety, efficiency, and compliance by combining two cutting-edge in-cab commercial vehicle ecosystems, which will give customers access to more applications and offerings.
From Trimble customers’ point of view, they will continue to enjoy the benefits of their Trimble solutions, with the added flexibility of the Virtual Vehicle platform from Platform Science. That means Virtual Vehicle-enabled fleets will receive access to the Virtual Vehicle Marketplace, offering hundreds of new and expanded applications, software, and solution providers focused on innovating and improving drivers' quality of life and fleet performance.
Meanwhile, Platform Science customers will enjoy the added choice of Trimble's remaining portfolio of transportation solutions which will be available on the Virtual Vehicle platform, the partners said.
"We believe combining our global transportation telematics portfolio with Platform Science's will further advance fleet mobility and provide our customers with a broader portfolio of solutions to solve industry problems," Rob Painter, president and CEO of Trimble, said in a release. "Increased collaboration between the new Platform Science business and Trimble's remaining transportation businesses will enhance our ability to provide positive outcomes for our global customers of commercial mapping, transportation management, freight procurement, and visibility solutions. This deal will result in significant synergies along with tremendous opportunities for employees to continue to grow in a more-competitive business."
The acquisition comes just five months after Platform Science raised $125 million in growth capital from some of the biggest names in freight trucking, saying the money would help accelerate innovation in the commercial transportation sector.
Nearly one-third of American consumers have increased their secondhand purchases in the past year, revealing a jump in “recommerce” according to a buyer survey from ShipStation, a provider of web-based shipping and order fulfillment solutions.
The number comes from a survey of 500 U.S. consumers showing that nearly one in four (23%) Americans lack confidence in making purchases over $200 in the next six months. Due to economic uncertainty, savvy shoppers are looking for ways to save money without sacrificing quality or style, the research found.
Younger shoppers are leading the charge in that trend, with 59% of Gen Z and 48% of Millennials buying pre-owned items weekly or monthly. That rate makes Gen Z nearly twice as likely to buy second hand compared to older generations.
The primary reason that shoppers say they have increased their recommerce habits is lower prices (74%), followed by the thrill of finding unique or rare items (38%) and getting higher quality for a lower price (28%). Only 14% of Americans cite environmental concerns as a primary reason they shop second-hand.
Despite the challenge of adjusting to the new pattern, recommerce represents a strategic opportunity for businesses to capture today’s budget-minded shoppers and foster long-term loyalty, Austin, Texas-based ShipStation said.
For example, retailers don’t have to sell used goods to capitalize on the secondhand boom. Instead, they can offer trade-in programs swapping discounts or store credit for shoppers’ old items. And they can improve product discoverability to help customers—particularly older generations—find what they’re looking for.
Other ways for retailers to connect with recommerce shoppers are to improve shipping practices. According to ShipStation:
70% of shoppers won’t return to a brand if shipping is too expensive.
51% of consumers are turned off by late deliveries
40% of shoppers won’t return to a retailer again if the packaging is bad.
The “CMA CGM Startup Awards”—created in collaboration with BFM Business and La Tribune—will identify the best innovations to accelerate its transformation, the French company said.
Specifically, the company will select the best startup among the applicants, with clear industry transformation objectives focused on environmental performance, competitiveness, and quality of life at work in each of the three areas:
Shipping: Enabling safer, more efficient, and sustainable navigation through innovative technological solutions.
Logistics: Reinventing the global supply chain with smart and sustainable logistics solutions.
Media: Transform content creation, and customer engagement with innovative media technologies and strategies.
Three winners will be selected during a final event organized on November 15 at the Orange Vélodrome Stadium in Marseille, during the 2nd Artificial Intelligence Marseille (AIM) forum organized by La Tribune and BFM Business. The selection will be made by a jury chaired by Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and CEO of the Group, and including members of the executive committee representing the various sectors of CMA CGM.
Economic activity in the logistics industry expanded in August, though growth slowed slightly from July, according to the most recent Logistics Manager’s Index report (LMI), released this week.
The August LMI registered 56.4, down from July’s reading of 56.6 but consistent with readings over the past four months. The August reading represents nine straight months of growth across the logistics industry.
The LMI is a monthly gauge of economic activity across warehousing, transportation, and logistics markets. An LMI above 50 indicates expansion, and a reading below 50 indicates contraction.
Inventory levels saw a marked change in August, increasing more than six points compared to July and breaking a three-month streak of contraction. The LMI researchers said this suggests that after running inventories down, companies are now building them back up in anticipation of fourth-quarter demand. It also represents a return to more typical growth patterns following the accelerated demand for logistics services during the Covid-19 pandemic and the lows of the recent freight recession.
“This suggests a return to traditional patterns of seasonality that we have not seen since pre-COVID,” the researchers wrote in the monthly LMI report, published Tuesday, adding that the buildup is somewhat tempered by increases in warehousing capacity and transportation capacity.
The LMI report is based on a monthly survey of logistics managers from across the country. It tracks industry growth overall and across eight areas: inventory levels and costs; warehousing capacity, utilization, and prices; and transportation capacity, utilization, and prices. The report is released monthly by researchers from Arizona State University, Colorado State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, and the University of Nevada, Reno, in conjunction with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP).
That hiring surge marks a significant jump in relation to the company’s nearly 17,000 current employees across North America, adding 21% more workers.
That increase is necessary because U.S. holiday sales in 2023 increased 3.9% year-over-year as consumer spending grew even amidst uncertain economic times and trends like inflation and consumer price sensitivity. Looking at the coming peak, a similar pattern is projected for this year, with shoppers forecasted to drive a 4.8% increase in holiday retail sales for 2024, Geodis said, citing data from Emarketer.
To attract the extra workforce, Geodis says it will offer competitive wages, peak premium pay incentives, peak and referral bonuses, an expedited payment option, and flexible schedules. And it’s using an AI-powered chatbot named Sophie to serve as a virtual recruiting assistant.
“We acknowledge the immense responsibility we have to our customers to deliver exceptional service every day, and this is especially true during peak season,” Anthony Jordan, GEODIS in Americas Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, said in a release. “Because peak season is the most business-critical sales period of the year for many of our retail clients, expanding our workforce is vital to ensure we have a flexible, dynamic team that can handle anticipated surges in demand.”